Digital Asset Use Cases Are Ready To Explode | Deutsche Bank, G+D, CryptoUK | FF Virtual Arena #324

The potential of digital assets for financial institutions is huge. 

For our latest Virtual Arena, we gathered a panel of speakers including Sabih Behzad from Deutsche Bank, Alex Gatiragas from G+D, and Teana Baker-Taylor from Crypto UK to find out how financial institutions are getting on board and what this might mean for consumers. 

No matter where you stand on crypto, CBDCs and DLT, there’s no denying the space is moving fast. Many analysts predict the space will start to mature in 2025, and many countries are experimenting with or launching CBDCs.

In this revealing discussion our expert speakers provide insights into various aspects of the topic, including the potential opportunities for financial institutions, the challenges in navigating regulatory landscapes, the role of technology in instilling confidence, and the importance of offering optionality to consumers.

Sabih Behzad, who is Head of Digital Assets & Currencies Transformation at Deutsche Bank, and speaks about this topic regularly, highlighted the significant opportunity for financial institutions in the digital asset space. He emphasized the emergence of cryptocurrencies and how the powerful technology behind them has the potential to revolutionize traditional banking operations. He identifies key areas of opportunity such as unlocking new investment classes through asset tokenization and much more.

Speaking with the regulator

Teana Baker-Taylor, who is on the board of Crypto UK and consults on the blockchain and digital assets, focused on the evolving regulatory environment surrounding the technology. She discusses the challenges of adapting existing regulatory frameworks to accommodate the unique characteristics of digital assets and highlights the need for regulatory clarity to spur adoption and innovation, particularly in areas like payments and tokenization of assets. Unlocking payments through DLT is an area we’ve looked at before. 

There’s some really great insights here from someone who is at the heart of moving this space forward. The need for a collaborative approach between regulators and industry stakeholders is clearly needed.

On the side of fintechs helping banks to innovate we have Alex Gatiragas, from Giesecke + Devrient, who talks about the practical considerations for financial institutions entering this space, particularly regarding custody solutions. He discusses the shift from traditional ledger-based custody to decentralized custody models where individuals hold their own keys to access digital assets on the blockchain. He also says it’s important to offer both custodial and self-custody solutions to cater to the diverse needs of consumers particularly in such a dynamic space. He also discusses the build vs. buy dilemma faced by banks when implementing digital asset solutions, advocating for a flexible approach that integrates existing systems with specialized technology.

A must watch discussion

Throughout the discussion, the panelists address the need for banks to instill confidence and trust in consumers regarding digital assets. Behzad highlights the role of education in increasing understanding and mitigating the risks associated with new technologies. The speakers also collectively underscored the need for banks to adapt to changing consumer preferences and technological advancements.

It’s a really interesting opportunity and banks can certainly capitalize on the transformative potential of digital assets. This episode of our Virtual Arena should give you all the information you need.

The great thing about our virtual arenas is the more in depth discussions we are able to have. Be sure to tune in to our latest episode to get clued up on this exciting topic.